About Us

Letter from co-directors Corina Gutiérrez and hanna oldsman

Dear dance families,

Welcome to Queens School of Ballet! We are so excited to have you join our QSB family and want to tell you a bit about our school and its philosophy. 

Queens School of Ballet is a classical ballet school, and we strive to pass along the beauty and discipline of ballet technique while also providing a fun, healthy, and nurturing environment for our students. We pride ourselves on being a diverse and inclusive dance studio in LIC.

Our small classes allow for lots of individualized attention so we can cater to each dancer's needs. We train our students according to the Vaganova tradition, the method taught in schools and companies in Russia to dancers such as Baryshnikov, Nureyev, and Makarova. It is a pure and logical approach to dance which produces strong, elegant, and artistic dancers. All of our ballet teachers are certified by the Bolshoi Ballet in this methodology. 

Ballet promotes the growth of so many important qualities in children: musicality, coordination, creativity, discipline, teamwork. Ultimately, it is our goal not just to help our students to become the best dancers they can be, but to instill in them an appreciation and love for classical dance. A dance education is a gift that lasts a lifetime, whether a student decides to pursue a career as a dancer or is drawn in other directions.

We look forward to being a part of your child's dance education.

Warmly,

Hanna and Corina

Faculty

Corina Gutiérrez — Co-Director — pre ballet, ballet technique, pointe

Corina Gutiérrez, born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, received her professional training with Sasha Gosic and Nedo Vojkic in Escuela Ballet Classique where she received a full scholarship. Right after her graduation she became part of Ballet de Maracaibo and later on she was promoted to principal dancer and received a recognition award from the Mayor’s Office in the City of Maracaibo for her outstanding trajectory in the new generations of the region’s scenic arts.

She is a member of Staten Island Ballet and a soloist with Victoria Ballet Theater. Her classical repertory includes principal and soloist roles in The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, La Bayadere, Paquita, Spartacus, Le Cid, Le Corsaire, Pas de Quatre, Pathetique Symphony, Don Quixote, Sleeping Beauty and others. Corina has also been featured in music videos and print work. She is a co-producer/director of Dance for Venezuela, a performance benefitting children from Venezuela through the charity Aid for Life.

Corina has a Bachelor in Fine Arts from La Universidad del Zulia in Venezuela and is a Bolshoi Ballet Academy Certified Teacher for levels I-VIII and pas de deux. She has been a guest teacher at many dance schools in New York and New Jersey. After being trained by her, students have attended the finest art schools and competitions in America.

hanna oldsman — co-director — pre ballet, ballet technique, pointe

Hanna Oldsman was born in Boston, Massachusetts and received her early training at the Lexington School of Ballet and with former Mariinsky dancers Tatiana Legat and Elena Solovieva. She was later accepted to Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C., where she was in Galina Kozlova's graduating class. Following graduation she attended Barnard College and earned a BA summa cum laude in English literature while also continuing her dance studies.

Hanna has performed with several companies in New York, including Staten Island Ballet, New York Dance Theatre, Julia Bengtsson Dance, Victoria Ballet Theater, Mooney Cooley Dance, Peconic Ballet Theatre, and Danse En L'air, dancing soloist and principal roles in contemporary repertory and classical ballets such as Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Flames of Paris, Paquita, The Nutcracker, and Le Corsaire. She is also a co-producer/director of Dance for Venezuela, a benefit performance for Venezuelan children in need.

She has taught ballet to children throughout the tri-state area and is a Bolshoi Ballet-certified teacher in levels I-III.

Katie McDermott — adult ballet

Katie McDermott was born in Los Angeles, CA, and trained with former Prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet, Alla Khanishvili, and former principal dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet, Vitaly Artuskin. While attending college in New York City, at The New School University, she continued her professional ballet training with Sara Knight. After graduating cum laude with a BA in Visual Studies/ Art History, Katie began her professional career as a ballet dancer and teacher.

Katie has performed and guested for several companies in New York, as well as nationally.
She is a member of Staten Island Ballet, and a soloist with Victoria Ballet Theater. Her classical repertoire includes both principal, soloist, and corps de ballet roles in The Nutcracker, Esmeralda, Le Corsaire, Flames of Paris, La Vivandiere, Sleeping Beauty, La Bayadere, and Don Quixote.

For the last six years, Katie has been teaching students of various ages and levels; from dancers at a pre-professional level who are about to begin their own professional careers, to beginner teens, to pre-ballet children, aged three years old.

julie grenier - pre ballet, adult contempotary

Julie Grenier is a dedicated and passionate dancer and teacher originally from Massachusetts, where she began dancing at age 5. She moved to the city after graduating high school to pursue a career in the performing arts. Once in NYC, Julie began training extensively at Broadway Dance Center, leading her to complete BDC’s own training program with a focus in contemporary. Julie has performed at Symphony Space, the Brooklyn Dance Festival as part of the Brooklyn Dance Festival Company at the Actors Fund Theater, and with Synthesis Too under the direction of Tracie Stanfield. She also had the privilege of dancing in the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics. As a teacher she believes class should be a place to have fun and grow in a safe and positive environment. She strives to provide an experience that is challenging and enjoyable to all with a focus on individual attention in order to nurture each student’s unique talent and abilities.

Michiko Takemasa - Adult ballet

She is originally from Japan where she started to dance at the age of 5. After coming to the United States, she studied at Alvin Ailey American Dance School. She has appeared in numerous musical theater and dance performances. Her theater credits include 2015’s Broadway revival of The King and I (Lincoln Center Theater), directed by Bartlett Sher, as well as their first National Tour. Others are Miss Saigon, Big River, Mary Poppins, Oliver, Fiddler on the roof, Sayonara, Peter Pan and many more. She also has danced with Victoria Ballet Theatre, The Kristin Lavransdatter Ballet, and SGI ballet. Michiko has recently appeared in the short film “Sprit Box”.